Conventional development strategies consider stormwater as a secondary component of site design, usually managed with “pipe-and-pond” systems that collect stormwater and discharge it away from where it fell. Alternatively, Low Impact Development incorporates the existing hydrology into the site design.

While both approaches are acceptable, the conventional approach is by far the most commonly selected. However, conventional development creates a lot of runoff—and the issues associated with runoff—because of the amount of impervious surfaces, large-scale turfgrass landscaping, modification of soil or slope, and changes to natural features like meadows, wetlands, farm lands, and forests. This can stress retention ponds and other structural BMPs that are designed to centralize and treat stormwater from a large area.  Knowing what we do about the impact of conventional development, the group will be looking at ways to incentivize a LID approach to make it more attractive or more economically feasible for developers to select.